Business interruption planning and business continuity planning are just as important as marketing and business plans. Unlike marketing and business plans, however, business interruption planning and business continuity planning provide a step-by-step guide on how your business will commence following disasters and severe interruptions.
According to the U.S. Small Business Administration, a staggering 25% of business affected by significant disasters fail to ever reestablish and reopen. This harrowing number can be directly related to the old sentiment - if you fail to plan, you are essentially planning to fail.
Instead of leaving the recovery of your business to chance, the experts at Premier Safety Partners will work with you to develop a solution-based business interruption plan and a business continuity plan. Continue reading to learn more about both of these critical facets.
What Is Business Interruption Planning?
Business interruption planning or disaster recovery is the process of creating a detailed strategy on the next steps your employees should follow during and immediately after a significant emergency or disaster.
In addition to describing exit procedures, business interruption planning outlines all of the various communication instructions to ensure every employee is accounted for. It also ensures all employees are effectively communicating with your central hub.
What is a Business Continuity Plan?
Your business continuity planning takes business interruption planning a few steps further by explaining and outlining how your business will continue to operate following a disaster.
It should also outline how your business will continue functioning after less disastrous, smaller events, such as power outages. A business continuity plan should describe where and how your business will thrive if it has to move to a new temporary location.
Simply put, a business continuity plan identifies the crucial, long-term strategies in place to ensure your business generates profits and continues to maintain stability.
Are Business Interruption Planning and Continuity Planning Independent?
Your business interruption planning and business continuity planning are exceptionally interdependent. So much so that they are commonly solidified into a single detailed plan encompassing all of the unexpected possibilities your business may face.
Both plans may cover several of the same aspects, such as temporary locations, communication factors, and security features. Yet, both plans cover items the other one does not. For example, business interruption planning includes multiple preventative strategies your business should take, such as conducting fire drills and installing smoke alarms.
On the other hand, business continuity planning introduces different strategies your business can take for smooth operations, such as securing replacement equipment and obtaining disaster recovery loans.
Periodically Review Your Business Plan
Just as you would with your marketing and business plan, it's imperative to continually review your business interruption and business continuity plan. While you may not review them every quarter, you should make it a practice to review them yearly.
These plans should be reviewed and adjusted as your business grows and its needs change. All emergency kits should be replenished and refreshed. Additionally, your strategies should be analyzed to make sure they still meet the projected needs of your business.
Since you may be partial to your own planning, it's always a great practice to use an outside health and safety consulting firm to review your disaster recovery and business continuity plans.
Key Planning Considerations
When you're in the process of business interruption planning and business continuity planning, it's important to consider internal as well as external factors. Some of the most commonly overlooked external factors include:
- Economic demands
- Customer needs
- Supplier deviations
- Environmental possibilities
For instance, you should always be concerned with how your suppliers may be affected. You may want to consider how these external factors will affect the ability of your business to function, which will empower you to think about steps to overcome these challenges.
Contact PSP for Business Interruption & Continuity Planning
The experts at Premier Safety Partners offer decades of experience helping business owners create and fine tune their business continuity and business interruption plans. We specialize in helping businesses across an array of industries, including:
Whether you have already started or looking to get started, Premier Safety Partners can help. Contact us today for a free consultation.
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